Audience Theorists

1. AUDIENCE THEORISTS
Connor Crosby

2. JEREMY TUNSTALL – PRIMARY, SECONDARY,
TERTIARY AUDIENCE ENGAGEMENT
Primary, Secondary, Tertiary Audience Engagement: "Watching films in a cinema
involve a primary mode of audience engagement as the spectator is immersed with the
narrative while watching a programme at home on television may involve eating a meal
at the same time, texting, using social media or other additional activities. Tertiary
audience engagement is using the text as background media like music radio".
– Primary (close attention) e.g. cinema, books
– Secondary (the medium in question is relegated to the background) e.g. Radio, some
TV, music
– Tertiary (although medium is present, no conscious monitoring takes place) e.g.
pictures

3. BLUMLER AND KATZ – USES AND
GRATIFICATIONS THEORY
Uses and Gratifications Theory: "Different audiences gain different pleasures from a
media text e.g. Gravity can be enjoyed via diversion or escapism, it can use surveillance
to give information to audiences and can also be discussed on forums and blogs as a
form of developing personal relationships(common also in video games). Personal
identity can be developed with audiences who relate to certain characters more than
others". The Uses and Gratifications Theory follows a basic model. It is an audience-centered
approach. When an audience actively seeks out media, they are typically
seeking it in order to gratify a need. For example, in social situations, people may feel
more confident and knowledgeable when they have specific facts and stories from
media to add to conversation. By seeking out media, a person fulfils a need to be
informed.

4. KATZ AND LARZASFELD – TWO-STEP
FLOW THEORY
Two Step Flow Theory: "Jonathan Ross discussed with his guest Steve Coogan the
recent phone hacking scandal and made it clear he had an opinion on the subject - this
reflects the Two Step Flow theory where an existing idea or belief is taken on by an
opinion leader (as in newspapers as the 'Fourth Estate')". This theory asserts that
information from the media moves in two distinct stages. First, individuals (opinion
leaders) who pay close attention to the mass media and its messages receive the
information. Opinion leaders pass on their own interpretations in addition to the
actual media content.

5. ADORNO – PASSIVE CONSUMPTION,
HYPODERMIC MODEL (FRANKFURT
SCHOOL)
Passive Consumption, Hypodermic Model (Frankfurt School): "A strong argument
suggests that audiences may be passively affected by the sexist, violent representations
in GTAV as it is a more realist text than other shoot em' up action adventure games.
Young audiences ultimately may begin to view women differently and think that the
aspirational violence is acceptable as a means to an end". The hypodermic needle
model (also known as the hypodermic-syringe model, transmission-belt model,
or magic bullet theory) is a model of communications suggesting that an intended
message is directly received and wholly accepted by the receiver.

6. DAVID GAUNTLETT – PRODUCER AS
CONSUMER (PROSUMER)
Producer as Consumer (Prosumer): "Media Studies students regularly make their own
short film productions but are also regular consumers of the media - in doing so they
are both producer and consumer blurring the boundaries of traditional media
consumption". Gauntlett published ‘Media Studies 2.0’ online in 2007, which argues
that classic media studies fails to define when the categories of ‘audiences’ and
‘producers’ unite, and that new, altered teaching methods are needed. He states that
because of web 2.0, we as audiences can become our own producers thanks to
websites such as YouTube. Through this we can create our own identity and even
influence other peoples.

7. STUART HALL – AUDIENCE POSITIONING AND
DOMINANT, NEGOTIATED, OPPOSITIONAL
READINGS
Audience Positioning and Dominant, Negotiated, Oppositional Readings: "Some texts,
like The Mighty Boosh may have a number of readings, dependent on audience - a
dominant reading could be that it is a postmodern representation of celebrity culture
while a negotiated reading could be that it is simply surreal and funny while an
oppositional reading could be that it is childish, subversive and offensive". Dominant
reading - audience will read the text the way the author intended them to so that the
code seems natural and transparent. The negotiated reading – the reader partly believes
the code and broadly accepts the preferred reading, but sometimes modifies it in a way
which reflects their own position. The oppositional reading – the readers social
position places them in an oppositional relation to the dominant code. They reject the
reading.

8. STANLEY COHEN – MORAL PANICS
Moral Panics: "Recent stories about young audiences' behaviour after playing violent
video games reflects a common moral panic that some media like the Daily Mail
constantly seek to remind its readers of". A moral panic is an intense feeling expressed
in a population about an issue that appears to threaten the social order. A moral panic
occurs when a "condition, episode, person or group of persons emerges to become
defined as a threat to societal values and interests". Those who start the panic when
they fear a threat to prevailing social or cultural values are known by researchers
as moral entrepreneurs, while people who supposedly threaten the social order have
been described as "folk devils".

9. MARTIN BARKER – CHALLENGING
MORAL PANICS
Challenging Moral Panics: "Barker suggests once you have entered into a debate about
violent video games for example you must have already decided about negative media
effects". Martin Baker said “you can only have a witch-hunt if you believe in the
existence of witchcraft. You must have already decided in negative media effects if
your question is “does this product have the potential to deprave its audience ?””

10. GEORGE GERBNER – CULTIVATION
THEORY
Cultivation Theory: "The cultivation theory suggests that the more you look at
television, the more you are likely to believe in the reality of the representation e.g.
believing everything you see and hear on BBC News 24 and not challenging the nature
of a constructed text". Gerbner claimed that because TV contains so much violence,
“people who spend the most time in front of the tube develop an exaggerated belief in
a mean and scary world.” He also said “today, the TV set is a key member of the
household, with virtually unlimited access to every person in the family.”He compared
the power of television to the power of religion, saying that television was to modern
society what religion once was in earlier times.